Tractor Trivia
By Auctioneer Eric W. Mickelson
I love tractor stories. One of my favorite pastimes is to sit around the coffee table at home or at the cafe and listen to stories about farming and tractors of days gone by. My second favorite pastime is to sit on my couch and read a tractor magazine or book or maybe watch a tractor show on tv or youtube. Investigating craigslist, facebook marketplace, or ebay also provides me with hours of tractor entertainment.
A few years ago I got one of my favorite magazines in the mail and sure enough I ran across one of those great stories. It was a story of a family back in the early 1940s. They had moved from Oklahoma to Iowa to help one of the son’s family on his dairy farm, since he was in the military during WW II. Mom and dad and the younger brothers never did get used to the cold Iowa winters. When the older son was discharged they decided to move back south. They bought a 1939 9N Ford and a trailer. The tractor was fitted with a homemade cab and when it was time to go home the trailer was filled and the brothers drove it to their new farm that they had purchased in Arkansas. Yes, Arkansas! I love driving tractors down the road, but I am not sure about driving from Iowa to Arkansas on a 9N Ford!. Well it sounded like an adventure and they did make it home.
In 1995, about this time of year(October), I bought a D21 Allis Chalmers tractor near Newfolden, Minnesota. The next weekend we brought it home. My dad took the first shift and I got to drive the last home stretch home! It was a cold late October day and with no cab, although I dressed for the weather, it was a cold drive. That story of the 9N heading to Arkansas reminded me of many long tractor drive stories I have heard about. If you have a tractor drive story I would love to hear it! You can email me at: mickelsonauctions@gmail.com , or send me a note at 20555 340th Ave SE in Oklee, MN, or give me a call my number is in the book. I will look forward to hearing from you!
How about a little tractor trivia.
1. What year was the Ford 9N introduced?
2. The original price of the 9N Ford was?
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$495 B) $585 C) $599 D) $650
3. The 9N Ford had a _____ speed transmission.
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3 B) 4 C) 5 D) 6
4. One difference between the 9N and 8N was the 8N had a ____speed transmission.
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3 B) 4 C) 5 D) 6
5. By the end of its production the 8N Ford was selling for _____________?
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$999 B) $1099 C) $1204 D) $1404
Answers: 1. 1939 2. B. $585 3. A. 3speed 4. B. 4speed 5. D. $1404